As a reader of Nolo’s books and articles on real estate, you probably know that we recommend that home buyers ALWAYS include an inspection contingency in their purchase contract. That allows you to hire one or more licensed home inspectors to do a full report on the house, and to close the deal only if satisfied with (or able to negotiate around) whatever problems the report turns up.

But Patricia Wangsness, a broker with Coldwell Banker in Washington State, adds some important cautions to this advice: “Realize that inspectors are not all alike! Even if you hire an inspector who is fully licensed, you might find that one who is a former electrician will tell you a great deal about faulty wiring and sockets and deemphasize some other issues, while one who’s a former plumber will look hardest at drains and pipes.”

What’s going on here? Aren’t you hiring the person to conduct a “general” inspection of your home?

“Yes,” explains Patricia, “but inspectors arrive at this career in different ways. Some came from the building industry during the downturn, when they lost their jobs. Others simply decided that inspection was easier than what they were doing before. I’ve even heard media ads for inspector training courses, with taglines like, ‘Make your own hours! Work only three days a week!’”

This can be a serious issue, given the breadth of a standard home inspection. The inspector needs sufficient knowledge to evaluate most of the home’s features and systems. He or she should walk through the entire house, examining or testing for defects or malfunctions in its structure, systems, and physical components, such as the roof, plumbing, foundation, fireplace, doors and windows, electrical and heating/cooling systems, and so forth. The inspector will also check the exterior of the house for grading and drainage issues, problems with retaining walls, and more. (See the “Home Disclosures, Inspections, and Appraisals” section of Nolo’s website for more information.)

As a buyer, you can understand why this makes it especially important that you do your research before choosing an inspector. Even if you find one whom you’re confident is highly trained and regarded, finding out details concerning his or her background might help you understand various related issues in the transaction – such why the inspector is focusing more on some problems than others, or perhaps why the seller responds to a request for repairs with, “But we did a pre-sale inspection and that never came up as an issue!”

If you’re a home seller, this insight might even weigh against getting a pre-inspection with the hopes of fixing up problems before putting the house on the market. As Patricia explains, “You might repair all the problems the inspector tells you about, only to have the buyer’s inspector come up with a list of new defects!”

About Ilona Bray

The blog is written by Ilona Bray, a Nolo editor and co-author of Nolo's Essential Guide to Buying Your First Home. Ilona Bray is a former attorney, now author and editor at Nolo. She has co-authored many popular Nolo real estate titles, including Selling a House in a Tough Market and First-Time Landlord. In her spare time, she enjoys walking the hidden paths in her neighborhood and visiting weekend open houses.